A friend of me suggests that iconography in architecture works just in a single design. After that, the fun would be gone, he argues. The reality is more sophisticated than that. The three Palm-islands in Dubai rather reinforce the brand they represent, rather than weakening it. Most icongraphic buildings move in between referring to a popular image and singularity. The popular image is inherently replicated in all ways possible. As with the Palm-islands the imagability is only reinforces by its repetitioners.

Although one might suggest with good reason that the reference to original image – for instance that of the pyramids of Egypt – is lost and the image becomes a simulacrum, the examples on this blog illustrate mostly that this is in fact not the case. The iconography of the pyramid is used for a museum with a large collection of artifacts of Egypt or is placed in another desert (Nevada) next to another Sphinx. The iconography of the sails is used for buildings that are placed along shores. The iconography of waves is also used for locations along a shore, but also for a swimming pool. The iconography of the palm is used for a vacation-resort. The iconography of a bridge is used for locations near monumental bridges. And the penis-iconography is used to illustrate the power and might of corporations.

The Iconography Top 10 is a work in process and will be periodically updated. The projects are ordered by date - the newest project is placed first.